Tomorrow night sometime between 9-11PM the darkness will truly settle, the kids will scream out something blood curdling and the open bar vodka will be chugged. It will be time to get rinsed, nay, RINSED in the back room of Public Assembly with Blacky II and Dan Wender delivering all that moves you, A.Pop with the aesthetics and Professor Mims at the door and on the floor.

The concept was that there was none

This is also a special occasion, it’s the one year anniversary, one year ago Blacky and Dan got together and threw their chips into the rotating roulette of nightlife building something abashedly fun, illicit, open and dangerous like Odysseus partying with the Sirens instead of keeping himself all tied up. As had happened in the past (one wonderful memory is Beacon performing an amazing live set at the party) there will be special guests, this night it will be Braille (Hotflush label), who already sound like a wonderful fit in my headphones.

We’ve had a chat with Blacky II, Dan Wender aka Carly and A.Pop about the past year, all that blood, all who bleed, 2012 and the future.

Dmitri: So, how do you think Rinsed evolved in the first year?

Blacky II: Is this the interview?

Dmitri: Yes-a, we started. Sit down, stand up.

RINSED: We started as a concept party, the concept was that there was none. It was meant to be affordable and have good music, that’s it. I think it was our second RINSED when we brought A Pop on board, she does the aesthetics for RINSED. It really made a huge difference and made it feel like you were somewhere. Since then i think we’ve all been inspiring each other and drawing inspiration from each other and really formed the identity of the party into something cohesive that people can relate to. Our madness have either been evolving extremely or devolving extremely, im not really sure, but the culmination of everything was last month at our installation at the Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival. This month for our anniversary (awww) we’ve upgraded to a bigger, louder room with more alcohol in it.

Oh yes I almost forgot all the wonderful art work that Imp Kerr provides and all the beautiful Spray Paint Installations our friend Nick does. They’re truly important to the party’s identity

Dmitri: Did you lose or gain blood?

RINSED: We’ve lost nearly all of our blood by now and are accepting donations.

Dmitri: Tell me about the culmination, the orgiastic installation at BEMF.

RINSED: BEMF is done by MeanRed, Jen Lyon and Katie Longmyer, I used to work for MeanRed, and Dan and Ana (A Pop) still work for MeanRed. They really helped us get RINSED started. So when they asked us to be a part of BEMF this year we were all really excited. It meant we had a unique opportunity to really get extra filthy. We were able to secure acts like Kingdom (who I’m actually listening to right now) and Girl Unit (who produced one of the greatest dance tunes in the last few years) which we would have never been able to book otherwise.

We feel like A Pop was so comfortable with designing the art installations for RINSED by this point that everything just looked so natural, and not like we were trying too hard or anything.

We played almost all original music or edits we made ourselves, which was a first for us. Everything just came together really nicely and made us all really happy.

Dmitri: Before we move on, I wanted to back track a bit and address: blood seems to be a central component in the RINSED party In the imagery, the words, the concept. What is that inspired by, what’s it about?

Dan Wender aka Carly: It’s the maximum degree of hedonism while maintaining sexy. We’re bathing in blood, and having sex in the middle of a blood soaked dance floor. it’s utter madness.

Dmitri: Isn’t hedonism sexy? Then maximum hedonism is maximum sexy? Or is there a distinction for you?

Dan: You can’t dance in shit and piss and stay sexy. You can dance in blood and stay sexy. It’s about no morals.

Dmitri: Abject vs immoral or disgusting vs. carefree?

Blacky II: I would say amoral. I remember saying it before RINSED had ever started. You always hear rappers and people who think they’re really awesome talking about ‘making it rain’, and they’re talking about money. I thought making it rain blood would make people automatically think that we’re taking things to a new level, and in a different direction, a slightly unsettling, darker level/direction. It’s not about money.

Dmitri: So like I can’t buy you to play a a soft song?

Dan: What does that mean?

Blacky II: Buy us? We may play soft songs here and there but it’s all a part of the larger picture.

Dmitri: Not caring about money means you’re not for sale, hence I used the word buy, it’s a joke more than a real question.

Blacky II: Oh, well then tell everyone I laughed really hard.

Dmitri: How have your DJ sets changed over the last year? Would you still play the same tracks as a year ago? Or is it more specific to each night?

Blacky II: When we started RINSED, I would say I had a pretty experimental style. I think I shaped that into something harder and more accessible over the course of the last year because I thought that was what the crowd wanted, which wasn’t necessarily true and I have just now begun to be able to find a happy medium that I’m comfortable with. Certain tracks are timeless and I’ll be able to play them forever, while others get old fast. There are definitely nights where you can get away with a bit more than others. I remember playing Harry Nilsson a few months ago and the crowd was going insane. I’ve not even tried playing it again since.

Dan: I would say I play a lot more RnB inspired music now. A lot of British house with chopped up vocals and things like that. There are definitely tunes that I’ve played at every RINSED from the very beginning to now. Proven tunes that will always make people dance. I really think the key is to be able to read the crowd and give the people what they want.

Blacky II: I really like working with Dan because we like a lot of the same stuff but our styles are very different. There are a lot of tracks I play that Dan would never touch and vice versa and I think thats what makes it work. There’s a nice level of variation, and I think the crowd appreciates it. I know I do. I love being surprised by a song I never thought I would like.

I want them to bring themselves to Rinsed without any intention of a dignified evening

Dmitri: Beautiful. OK, so next year, next year is 2012 and some say that it will be the year when it rains blood from the sky etc., as the apocalypse comes what are your predictions? Desires for next year?

RINSED: We didn’t realize it at first, but RINSED IS the harbinger of the apocalypse. The Mayan calendar is a prediction of RINSED. We will continue to listen to the voice of the blood baby birthed from the cross insemination of A Pop and Professor Mims (our door professor) and do our part in facilitating blood raining from the sky, the end of the world as you know it, forced evolution via the reduction of all humans back to a primordial soup, then taking that bloody rain human soup and mixing it all together, ending all conflict, loneliness, and pain brought about by individual existence.

Dmitri: Ways to cope with the end of the world?

Blacky II: People just need to get this through their heads, and come to terms with it. Those who accept this will be at RINSED helping the facilitation process and enjoying their last days properly.

Dmitri: What of the people who’ve been joining you, what do you wish them to bring? How can the facilitate, to use your term?

Dan: I want them to bring themselves to RINSED without any intention of a dignified evening we insist that people have sex on the dance floor, we insist that people dance until they dehydrate and die we insist that drug-addicted babies are conceived at RINSED, we encourage binge drinking and provocative dancing.

Blacky II: They can get their hair done right, their nails done right, and someone to watch their kids. Rip their faces off, eat their faces, and still have a face when they look in the mirror next. Be cautious of falling snakes. Exterminate all rational thought. Drink, smoke, and do drugs. Donate Cadillacs to the police department and Give up Hope.

Dmitri: Eliminate all skull cum. Who is a perfect “Rinser”?

Blacky II: There’s a friend of ours we’ll call her…Maybeline. She is the quintessential Rinsee. She comes early, gets wasted at the open bar, gets naked and dances on the DJ booth, engages in illegal activities, and stays late.

Dmitri: Can’t wait to meet her. Any last words?

Blacky II: Time to die.

RINSED: Oh yeah, we want to give a shot out to POPS, head of security, who always holds us down and we want to thank Public Assembly, MeanRed, and everyone that comes out and makes the party what it is and everyone who helped us have such a successful year.

Pauly a dead ringer for Action Bronson has two knuckle tattoos, the left one says Love, the right one says Love

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